12 Exhibition


Jade plate with dragon pattern, China, Liao or Jin dynasty, 10th/13th centuries © National Palace Museum, Taipei


One of a pair of vases decorated with dragons, Qing dynasty, Qianlong reign (1736-95), underglaze blue porcelain with wucai (five-colour) enamel decoration © National Palace Museum, Taipei


Mirror decorated with clouds and a dragon, middle Tang dynasty (618-907), 8th/9th centuries, bronze with a silvery reflective surface © National Palace Museum, Taipei


HERE BE DRAGONS D


ragons, unlike in the West where they were often seen as evil, were seen in China as


largely benign and auspicious spirits that dwelt in the sky and were closely related to the element of water. East Asian dragons have serpentine bodies, four legs but no wings, but they can fly. Tey are wise and powerful but can also be dangerous as well as helpful. Teir association with water gives life to the earth – they were thought to bring rain clouds during drought, but were also blamed for great floods. Found throughout all periods of Chinese history, dragons are beneficent beings linked to rain and water as well as being identified with the emperor and the imperial court. To explore this mythical world, works from the heritage collections of the National Palace Museum in Taipei were shown in Paris at Musée du quai Branly, to explore the history of dragon iconography and the importance of this powerful symbol in Chinese imperial arts. From the Yuan dynasty (1271-


1368) onward, the imperial dragon is commonly depicted chasing the flaming pearl amidst the clouds, alone or in pairs. Te pearl represents thunder and evolution, in reference to a legendary belief that pearls were born from the fertilisation of seashells by thunder. Tis motif is also considered a magical jewel – cintamani in Buddhist contexts – the


‘precious pearl which grants all desires’. Te Tree Teachings (Taoism,


Confucianism, and Buddhism), as well as folklore, have attributed countless forms and meanings to the dragon, manifesting it as a master of rain, lord of the waters and mountains in local nature cults. Merging with the mythical Indian serpent (naga), the


dragon also becomes the


guardian of the Buddha, while Daoism makes it one of the four fundamental creatures and a mount for immortals. Alongside the Black Tortoise of the north, associated with water, the White Tiger of the west,


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Echoes of Thunder: Unveiling


the Mythical Chinese Dragon


bestiary, the dragon has been associated with these disciplines since ancient times, first appearing in the Neolithic period. Te earliest dragon-like images, such as the ‘pig dragon’, appeared in the Neolithic Hongshan (4700-2900 BC) and Xinglongwa cultures in Northern China,


located in present-day


Mongolia and northeastern China. It is characterised by a snout, small ears, and a long, coiled body. Te connection to the dragon is purely symbolic, as the use and meaning of this type of jade remain hypothetical due to a lack of written sources. Te dragon figure also took shape during the Bronze Age (2700 to 800 BC), before becoming the emblem of the emperors, holders of the Mandate of Heaven. Legend


suggests the Yellow


Vase in the shape of a celestial sphere decorated with a dragon and lotus, Jingdezhen, Ming dynasty (1368-1644), Yongle reign (1403-24), blue and white porcelain © National Palace Museum, Taipei


associated with metal, and the Vermilion Bird of the south, associated with fire, the Azure dragon of the east, associated with wood. Dragons are also part of the zodiac, where they are granted a special status: among the 12 animals of the cycle, the dragon is the only mythical creature. Even today, being born in the Year of the Dragon is a sign of strength of character and charisma,


foreshadowing great


success. With the dragon’s history spanning


nearly 5,000 years, appearing as early as the Bronze Age in the Yellow River Valley, where it influenced social, political, spiritual, and artistic life. A symbol of strength, prosperity,


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natural dragons


vitality, acquired


and authority, an emblematic


dimension in the Chinese world. At once terrestrial, aquatic, and aerial, they populate tales and myths, developing their own majestic aesthetic. Evoking wisdom, harmony, and, conversely, indomitable power, the dragon has inspired the creativity of artists and artisans for centuries, crossing ancient and contemporary Chinese


civilisations, influencing


the arts and traditions of a vast cultural area. In China, jade and jade carved


objects, are considered the most precious material with calligraphy revered as the most prestigious art form. As the supreme animal of the


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Emperor (Huangdi) created the first dragon totem by incorporating the animal emblems of defeated tribes, making it a composite creature. While initially simpler, the dragon evolved, according to the Erya, one of the oldest Chinese dictionaries, into a beast that has deer antlers, a camel’s head, hare’s eyes, a serpent’s body, a mollusc’s belly, carp scales, eagle’s claws, tiger’s paws, and ox ears. Te Paris exhibition also explores the dragon in this earlier period of Chinese art through jade sculptures, alongside later objects such as bronze vases adorned with animal motifs, calligraphy, and funerary objects – all recalling the dragon’s central role in the beliefs and rituals of ancient China onwards. Although its image gradually


developed on royal objects from the Bronze Age onwards, the mythical animal was not assimilated to the emperor in official texts until the Liao dynasty (907-1125), where it showed its power linked to the divine right of the emperor as the ‘god on earth’. Some court officials also wore dragon robes to represent the authority of the emperor symbolising the power to institute the will of the emperor and administer his laws and decrees. Dragon robes worn by high-


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Jade pig-dragon, northeast China, end of the Hongshan culture (4700-2900 BC), jade © National Palace Museum, Taipei


ranking officials, jade seals and plaques, as well as royal documents and calligraphy, all illustrate the dragon’s imperial role. In Chinese civilisation nine, is


considered the most perfect number, being the square of three. It represents the triad of heaven, earth, and humankind upon which the balance of the universe rests. Te emperor, son of heaven, wore a robe adorned with nine dragons – each dragon a combination of nine different animals – covered in 81 scales. Tis number was considered auspicious and its multiples are even reflected in the architecture of the Forbidden City, which is said to contain 9,990 rooms in buildings with nine beams, 81 columns, and 270 tiles. Legend also recounts that the dragon has nine sons, notably represented in architecture: Bixi, with the body of a tortoise, supports pillars; Chiwen, resembling a fish, protects roofs from fire; Pulao adorns the handles of bells; Bi’an surmounts


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